How my millennial garden grows

HGTV personality and Herald Homes columnist Carson Arthur was in the city this week and came to the Herald office to treat some lucky contest winners to a VIP meet and greet (isn’t that a contest you’d love to win?). He shared some awesome insight into the local gardening and landscaping scene and answered all of his fans’ questions.

I perked up in particular when he started to talk about what each demographic desires in lawns and gardens. Millennials, Carson explained, are all about curb appeal. They’re willing to live further out of the city (me) to have an idyllic tree-lined street and picturesque home. As he continued to explain, I had the lightbulb moment and knew exactly what he was getting at.

“What’s the first thing a millennial does when they get something new?” he asked.

Take a selfie, of course.

I consider myself to be more Gen Y than millennial, which means I do take the photo, but I’m not in it. But overall, his definition of my generation of gardener was spot on. I want my home to look great, so while I don’t have great instincts or skills (read: fake flowers in my window box), I choose items like fresh black mulch and hearty hostas to fill my yard and give the impression that I have half a clue.

Additionally, Carson said, this generation is also starting to raise families (also me) and they’re looking for a space where their kids can get outside and get dirty (yep and the dirty kids are the ones who are actually in the Instagram photos). They also get unreasonably excited by things like heirloom tomatoes (starting my veggie plants this weekend, so yes to this too).

And of course, how could I resist the urge to get a selfie with the garden guru himself? My gardens may not be totally selfie worthy, but Carson is!